[OOC] Revue of Annihilation

[ERode]

@Estylwen


Pseudo-Daredevil hijinks at base sounds good. Don't overdo it though. Just so you know though, Oratorio's probably gonna fuck with her considering how concentrated the mortals are there compared to the environments she's been in before.

For her Domain, it'd be good if you could tell me what kinda of following you'd imagine she'd be gathering up in the future.

In regards to her Divine Protection, the Domain of Souls is doing a life-sense kinda thing, so there's some overlap. I'd say in general that the Divine Protection granted would work out well enough to detect things such as moving individuals and buildings and such, but smaller objects just get either lost in the background or 'fused' together with the one carrying them (the coins in a bag would just be a bag, a bag on a person would just be a person, a person in a carriage would just be a carriage, etc). In a similar way, small movements would be pretty hard to pick out, due to how the gravitational sense itself gives a more blobby feel.

Can imagine that this Protection gives her and her followers a sense that extends to around the size of a living room, so a 10 meter radius.

[ERode]

Random thought triggered.

What would your Followers be called, if you were Vtubers?

[Estylwen]

Pseudo-Daredevil hijinks at base sounds good. Don't overdo it though. Just so you know though, Oratorio's probably gonna fuck with her considering how concentrated the mortals are there compared to the environments she's been in before.

Yes boss, I've made some edits to the CS. Please lemme know how it looks now. I will relish torturing her a bit with the sensory overload....

For her Domain, it'd be good if you could tell me what kinda of following you'd imagine she'd be gathering up in the future.

The down-trodden, the one's kicked to the curb, the used and abused, the ones seeking revenge. Her personal goal is to track down and end those who did her and her family wrong, so it would make sense her following would be seeking power or revenge.

Hm, should I make her passive more battle-centered so there's no overlap? Didn't realize Souls already had something similar set up. Might make more sense for her to have something power or revenge related anyways.

I can tweak it, re-write it, just let me know!

Also: The Power Gauntlet.

[Izurich]

Random thought triggered.

What would your Followers be called, if you were Vtubers?

@ERode

Stellarites.

[ERode]

@Estylwen
It's up to you if you want to make it more battle-focused or not, but it should feel like something appropriate for the Domain, rather than the vibes of the Ichor-Blessed and their following. I personally wouldn't think of the Domain of Void/Gravity as a naturally war-like Domain.

Sounds good though. Kinda funny that there's probably three different Domains now that'll be angling towards appealing to the poor/unwashed masses.

Toss 'er in.

[Theyra]

Voi

Voi Narum
Human | 25 | Male | 6'0 | 160lbs
0th Circle | Souls

Voi had a different childhood growing up than most other children, instead of living somewhere sedentary, like in a village or a town. He grew up in a caravan, his parents being its leaders after the previous leader retired to a quiet town. Voi and his parents stood out since they were foreigners who came from another land before Voi was born. They were initially hired as guards to protect the caravan and eventually learned to be a merchant after spending years with the caravan. But Voi never felt like a foreigner while living in the caravan since everyone in it felt like family to him, and they treated him well.

Growing up, Voi traveled to various places and met many people while with the caravan. He was always curious about the lands and people that the caravan visited, and his parents satisfied this by buying him books to read while on the road. One curiosity Voi had was an interest in the afterlife. What happens after someone dies, and what happens to their soul? That question his parents could not answer, but one of the caravanners, an old merchant/mystic, started mentoring him on the subject and other related topics, learning much about it. Still, Voi was content with things, and things seemed good.

But, one day, they were camping in a forest for the night. When bandits attacked them, despite the best efforts of the guards and his parents, Voi was told to run by his parents with some of the other caravanners and reluctantly ran with the caravanners into the night. Voi would survive, as would a few of the caravanners. By the time they ventured back to the caravan, everyone there, including the pack animals, was dead. Voi found his parent's bodies and cried over them. The surviving caravanners and later Voi would notice that, curiously, none of the wares were touched, and a message was written on one of the carts. You two would never escape us, Death to Betrayers.

No one knew what that meant, and the survivors took what they could carry and walked to the nearest town. Voi was still saddened over their parents and the rest of the caravan's deaths and was perplexed by the message. What did it mean, and who in the caravan were they after? But it did not matter to him as most of the people he considered family were dead. It was clear that the bandits were more than mere bandits.

So after reaching the nearest town and recovering there, one of the caravanners adopted Voi. A middle-aged merchant by the name of Garth and moved to the merchant's hometown, where Voi would spend years with the merchant's family. But he could never forget that message on the cart and started training over the years to defend himself.

One day, while he was training, he started to feel weird, and as he hit the training dummy. Voi had a sudden vision of himself staring at an unknown figure, was hit by something, and exploded into a blast of unimaginable colors and intensities. As the colors blasted past him and he stared in awe. One of them, some kind of blue light, hit him square in the chest. He then snapped back to reality and stumbled down to the floor. Like something just hit him in the chest. Voi felt different and started to sense things near him. He soon discovered it was the people around him.

Now realizing that the vision was something important, he decided to figure out what the vision meant and before he left town. He was given money by Garth to support himself in his travels. He ended up in Oratorio after feeling naturally drawn to it and wanting to see what awaited him there.

Path to Ascension

0th Circle Ichor-Blessed

Ichor: 0
Wealth: 300
Followers: 0
Resources: None
Artifacts: None
Property: None.

Divine Protection of Souls
Within the range of a living room, people can sense the presence of other living beings as long they is not distracted or asleep.

Starting Benefit

Starting Capital - 300 Wealth The trip to Oratorio was expensive, but you made it with a fat purse leftover.

[ERode]

@Estylwen@Theyra Right, pick one skill, not two, for your Personal Refinement.

Anyhow, Theyra, just do a grammar check of your backstory, and I don’t have any issues with it. It wouldn’t be as a result of Voi’s travels though. He’d have been intrinsically drawn towards Oratorio.

As well, word his Divine Protection so that it doesn’t include his name. Those things serve as a passive boon that affect everyone under the Domain of Souls, rather than Voi specifically.

[Theyra]

@Estylwen@Theyra Right, pick one skill, not two, for your Personal Refinement.

Anyhow, Theyra, just do a grammar check of your backstory, and I don’t have any issues with it. It wouldn’t be as a result of Voi’s travels though. He’d have been intrinsically drawn towards Oratorio.

As well, word his Divine Protection so that it doesn’t include his name. Those things serve as a passive boon that affect everyone under the Domain of Souls, rather than Voi specifically.

@ERode

Okay, I have made some edits and changed his starting benefit to having the 300 wealth. Is this better?

[ERode]

Yah, I'm fine with that. Send 'im.

[ERode]

@Estylwen Reposting from Discord.

Once you are accepted, go to this link below. Make a copy of the spreadsheet via File > Make A Copy. After that, fill out whatever you can from there, which really shouldn't be too much. This will serve, hopefully, as a better form of record-keeping than constantly editing your post on RPGuild.

Once you do, make sure the sheet is viewable and then give me the link to it. I'll post it in this channel afterwards, as well as edit the first post of the Character Tab with it.

Link Here.

[Estylwen]

@Estylwen@Theyra Right, pick one skill, not two, for your Personal Refinement.

@ERode

For sure, I've updated my CS. How's it look now?

And I'll fill out the sheet when I have a moment, and send it over!

[ERode]

Map

Oratorio is a three-layered city where social stratification is incredibly visible.

The Outer Layer (denoted with 'O') comprise of those misfortunate souls who've just entered Oratorio and found themselves with little left except for their bodies, their labour. In featureless, blocky buildings with hardly any concern for health or personal space, the people here make do with what little they can get. The most needy of them all live in the Underpass, taking shelter in the covered route that newer Adventurers take to go from the Outer Layer into the Adventurers' District.

The Royal Road (denoted with 'G'), of course, is an elevated cityscape where the houses are spacious and beautiful, the wares are luxurious, and the people beautiful. There are guarded pathways heading uphill that'll bring you up to the Royal Road, and the guardsmen present, under the directive of the Guilds who employ them, regularly filter out anyone simply doesn't look like they belong. The elevated nature of the Royal Road is why the Underpass exists to begin with: recognizing that there is a need for movement between the Outer Layer and the Adventurer's District, civil engineers built covered pathways for people to travel through, and those same pathways became the last place where the desperate and unhoused can rest.

The Adventurer's District (denoted with 'A') feeds, supplies, and occasionally is home to those who seek to make their fortune within the Abyss. Plenty of options for entertainment exist there, as well as merchants who will happily exchange coin for materials. There is a bawdiness present, of course, an atmosphere that makes people hopeful and excited. But there are churches present too, who perform funeral rites at a discount if you bring in multiple people. There are couriers too, who specialize in delivering the last words of the fallen to family and friends. There are clinics, perpetually understaffed and overcapacity.

Map do be up. Use this to denote your character's current location in the IC. For future shenanigans, this will be used to track hijinks like where your Property is and how much of Oratorio you rule as well, but that's like, future shit.

[Shovel]

@ERodeFinished to the best of my capabilities so tell me if you want anything changed. I'm open to changing the Property to Skill.

Acolyte Cantor Amentha

Cantor Amentha

Human | 26 | Male | 5'10" | 63 kg
0th Circle | Preservation | Theme

Cantor Amentha, formerly known as Cant, was an orphan adopted by the Monasteries of His Weeping Saints during his childhood years. Formed during the fall of the Thousands-Faced God, the monastery's original function was to perform rites for those deceased during the Fall. In modern times, however, the Monastery function is more interconnected with the layman, working as priests, embalmers, and 'securities' in exchange for gold. They aren't rich by any means, but the monastery did provide a modicum of normalcy in this chaotic time.

This means that for those early years, Cantor's daily activities would be composed of praying, doing the field, and learning the sacred texts. A bit older, and he learned how to hold the sword and embalming bodies. Cantor, as an acolyte, excelled at dressing up the body, masquerading the face under the aura of "at peace." He does not hold the disgust nor the sheepiness against a corpse but provides the tenderness of a tailor and a dresser at work. And his work brought solace to the grieving family, allowing them to cherish their final moments together.

He still remembers the day he became ichor-blessed. It was a cold winter last year. Snow reached knee-deep. The monastery would usually try to house the unfortunate and bury those who passed away to avoid outbreaks during spring. This was Cantor's third time. He found a beggar on the street. From the look of it, the man must have succumbed to the frost before starvation overtook him. He must be an alien too, never see him from the locals. Still, Cantor washed his frostbitten body, put him in the white shroud, and buried him in the monastery cemetery. That night, they prayed for the unfortunate that they had buried. And they prayed that their help would be enough for those who need it.

For this is the purpose of the Church in this modern time. "Traditions persist, and history is important" his Head Priest once told him. They sing the hymn of God, not to pretend that he is alive, but because he has transcended the mortal definition of death. They prayed for the dead so that their suffering might stop and their existence continued beyond the mortal coil. Like their god, they will live on.

For the Head Priest once argued: "No one is truly dead. They only died when we forget them." This is what Cantor Amentha chose to believe in.

By the next morning, he was ichor-blessed.

The Spark, however, also has its demand. For some reason Cantor was particular drawn toward Oratorio. So, he ask the Head Priest to be transferred there. The Head Priest complied, transferring him to Ordo Benevolence should he be able to make the arduous journey. There, he would be tasked to help them with ceremonies and healing if need be. After a few months on the road, he reached his destination.

Path To Ascension

0th Circle Ichor-Blessed

Ichor: 0
Wealth: 0
Followers: 0
Resources: 0
Artifacts: None
Property: None.

Domain of Preservation
Paint and Brush for the Mortal Coil - No matter the cause of death, the body would look at ease when applying paint.

Starting Benefit
Property: A small stall inside the building of Ordo Benevolence. Used to house the order's members and patients as well as providing service. Located at A7.

[ERode]

@Shovel
Main thing in your backstory is that the Ichor-Blessed only existed within a year of each other, and their compulsion to head towards Oratorio is fairly strong. It's a need and a yearning and all. Adjust so that Cantor requested the transfer, and that he became the Ichor-Blessed of Preservation within the timespan of a year.

Once again, just so you're aware, Divine Protections are passives that are for the benefit of all. If you are aware, and are fine with such hijinks, then ye, I'm good with the "good at makeup" Divine Protection.

Considering the situation, I'd say...Ordo Benevolence exists. Pick out a place for it in the A-range on the map. Cantor, of course, doesn't own it, but rather than getting a free stall, I'll say that he gets a small (market-stall-sized) room to call his own inside that church building.

After those changes, you're good to go. His denomination can feel free to use masculine pronouns with the Thousand-Faced God.

[Click This]

Neither purple nor smug(mostly)

Meisa Amorette

Elf | 256 | ♀ | 157cm (5’ 2”) | 48kg (105lbs)
0th Circle | Civilization

A remnant of the lost, civilized era before the fall of the Thousand Faced God. An arrogant princess, tempered by time and the loss of an entire civilization, and one of the few to survive that historic calamity to live in the current day.

In those painful months following the death of God and the monstrous scourge that followed, the elven kingdom was one of the many that fell to anarchy and being overrun by creatures. Whisked away by her guards, Meisa was one of the few that retreated to the mountains where although besieged, an enclave of survivors formed to create a new society. Hidden away from the greater world, these survivors slowly grew to form the last city of a once great civilization. It was, and would always be, however, an existence in limbo.

Although the kings and queens were long gone, as the last royal, Meisa had a comfortable existence in exile. But to her, it was an unbearable one. Impotent. As the years passed, it was obvious to her that merely existing was not a way to live. A poor remnant, a shade of the past, a stagnant unaging population that could never move on—what was left was not a civilization, but a walking corpse, and a pitiable continuance. There was no motivation, no greater goal, and no progress to be made among those that were left.

The connections that could be made from outside were no less reassuring.

Once upon a time, she might have been an arrogant, vain young girl. In many respects, she still was. But the memories of proper civilization, and the horrors brought upon the land upon its fall that slowly seared themself to her very soul.

It could be recreated. She could do it herself and bring back what once was. She just had to shake off the coat of her own complacency. Among familiar lands was not the place to be, but instead she was drawn towards a distant city. Oratorio was far grander than what she knew now, but still a shade of what she remembered. Especially the slums.

But it was still a place to start.

Path to Ascension

0th Circle Ichor-Blessed

Ichor: 0
Wealth: 0
Followers: 0
Resources: None.
Artifacts: None
Property: None.

Divine Protection of Civilization
Harmony – Followers have a far easier time working together with others. The effect is increased when working with likeminded followers.

Starting Benefit
Treasured Companion - 1 Paladin. You've granted your grace upon someone whom you trust deeply.

Paladins:

The purple and smug you expected

Firenze

Elf | 251 | Female | 167 cm (5”6”) | 59 kg (130 lbs)
Tier 1 Paladin | Royal Bodyguard

The slight unhinged, lifetime bodyguard of her charge, Meisa. A loyal servant, if you can get past the mutual abusive master-servant relationship. Was of dubious loyalty in the past, but the death of a god and the loss of everything you held dear except for your arguably crappy mistress changes perspectives a bit, especially when said boss has the chutzpah to try and fill the vacant position.

For Meisa, at least, she really was the only natural choice to receive the spark.

Skills
Touched Mind – Firenze is particularly inventive. In logistics. In battle. In the dungeon.

Grades
STR - I | END - I | DEX - I | AGI - I | MAG - I | LCK - I

[Shovel]

@ERodeAll changes made as requested. But yeah, I think I'm fine with the "make up", seem like everyone else 0th level is also very mundane so I keep with the theme.

[ERode]

@ShovelToss it into the Character tab and go fill out the spread sheet.

@Click ThisFor the Paladin, unless you mean 'dungeons' as in literal prisons and hijinks, just remove that reference. She ain't tested in the Abyss yet.

For her Divine Protection, remove "discerning the intentions of". It's enough just to have them be more efficient working with other Followers. Mind-reading's something else. Other than that, she's good to go.

[ERode]

Worthwhile to repost here, I guesssssss.

The Ichor-Blessed can call forth Miracles via ritual n such, which can cause relatively large-scale effects and impose them upon the world. Think stuff like rain-making ceremonies and all that stuff. It's probably gonna be a long while before the Ichor-Blessed are just Wizards 2.0 with their divine abilities, slinging lightning bolts n all that stuff.

Magic exists generally on a more person-to-person level. They're still puzzling out the intricacies of how the world has changed over the years since the Thousand-Faced perished. Simplest stuff would be the manifestation of elements or internally strengthening yourself. You'll need more studying n all in order to get things that exist outside of elements (think telekinesis or magical wards or stuff like that). The stuff that's even more complicated would be hijinks like directly affecting someone else's body without physically going from the outside-in (curses, buffing others, etc).

So in terms of difficulty it's basically...
Enhancing yourself > Reproducing natural phenomenon > Reproducing only 'effects' > Affecting others directly with healing or curses.

[Click This]

@ShovelToss it into the Character tab and go fill out the spread sheet.

@Click ThisFor the Paladin, unless you mean 'dungeons' as in literal prisons and hijinks, just remove that reference. She ain't tested in the Abyss yet.

For her Divine Protection, remove "discerning the intentions of". It's enough just to have them be more efficient working with other Followers. Mind-reading's something else. Other than that, she's good to go.

@ERode

Nah, I don't mean the Abyss.

On the Divine Protection stuff, it's more like being good at reading people, not mind reading. Or is that still too much?

[ERode]

@Click ThisSo you meant prison-dungeons?

And yah, I'd say pick one or the other. I can see how being able to do both are somewhat related, but you don't need to be able to read people's intentions in order to swing pickaxes in the rhythm to a song n all. One feels more like an 'intellectual' boon, while the other feels like a 'workplace productivity' boon.